For a show best known for killing off major, beloved characters on a regular basis, it feels like The Walking Dead has been uncharacteristically kind to its current cast for a while now. The only “good guys” to have been killed over seasons 10 and 11 have been Siddiq and Alden, and they spent most of their time on the sidelines. But with only seven episodes left in the series, TWD is undoubtedly going to go on a murder spree. Who will live? Who will die? Let’s see…
Daryl
There’s no chance of Daryl Dixon dying whatsoever. Norman Reedus plays the most popular character on The Walking Dead by far, and is one of the only two who have managed to survive since season one. But more importantly, Daryl’s going to receive his own TWD spin-off series, which we know takes place in the future because it involves him inexplicably relocating to Europe to explore the “evolved” zombies we keep getting hints about.
Carol
The second of the two surviving characters from season one, Carol is also a fan-favourite and would also be a lock to stay alive if she were still starring in the Daryl spin-off TV series as was originally planned. Now that actor Melissa McBride dropped out, though, she’s no longer safe. Carol is the biggest character by far TWD could kill off without directly affecting the franchise’s announced plans, even though Reedus has hinted Carol could somehow appear in his series later. But that could also be in flashbacks! Frankly, I just don’t think Walking Dead has the guts to kill its second-biggest lead.
Maggie
I am absolutely certain that The Walking Dead doesn’t have the guts to kill off Maggie, even if Lauren Cohan also wasn’t getting her own spin-off series with Jeffrey Dean Morgan set in New York City, which means it too must happen in the future. Her husband Glenn’s death was still the most tragic loss in the series, and orphaning their son Herschel would likely cause viewers to riot.
Rosita
Although she’s been around since season four, Rosita (Christian Serranos) has never really had a story arc or character development or much of anything, really. I think The Walking Dead thinks she’s a main character who people want to see survive, and thus probably will, though.
Eugene
Despite being a liar, a traitor, and a creep, Josh McDermitt’s Eugene has managed to somehow stay a little loveable since his debut in season four, possibly thanks to his unironic mullet. He’s recently found romantic happiness for the first time with Max Mercer, so it would be cruel to take him out… but TWD might have given him this bit of happiness as a parting gift before killing him off. I put his odds of survival at 50/50.
Gabriel
Despite being a priest, Father Gabriel (Seth Gilliam) is one of the most miserable, bloodthirsty characters on the show, refusing to believe in any sort of redemption and constantly killing people in cold blood. If there was any narrative morality on TWD, he would have been dead long ago. I think it’s more likely than not he’ll finally be put out of his misery before the series ends.
Aaron
Mostly goodhearted and only occasionally murderous, Aaron is a character most viewers want to see live. The show could kill him off to add some of that signature Walking Dead tragedy, but I believe there’s a better, more likely candidate if the show wants to play that card…
Ezekiel
Ezekiel is a nicer, more likable, and less murderous character than Aaron, but he’s an absolute goner. Why? Well, we’ve spent a long time believing he was about to die already, thanks to his throat cancer. Now that it’s been cured, killing Ezekiel would not only be tragic, it would be ironically tragic, and give Carol some pathos as they had a longtime romance. It feels very TWD to kill a character with a new lease on life, so go ahead and say goodbye.
Jerry
Jerry is unquestionably the nicest and most loveable guy in the zombie apocalypse, and by a huge margin. He has a happy marriage and multiple kids. In the earlier, more brutal seasons of The Walking Dead, this would have placed a huge target on his back, but killing him off would be crueler to the viewers than serve any narrative purpose, and the show doesn’t really roll like that anymore. He’s probably safe. Maybe.
Elijah
His sister’s dead, he almost never speaks, and he’s no longer wearing his cool mask. I honestly couldn’t remember if Elijah was alive or not and had to check the fan wiki to find out, and I suspect this doesn’t bode well for the character’s survival, which I place at 30 per cent.
Negan
Like Gabriel, it would make a ton of narrative sense for Negan to die (almost certainly heroically) in penance for his previous villainy as leader of the Saviors, but it’s not happening. Jeffrey Dean Morgan is one of The Walking Dead’s biggest stars and his spin-off with Lauren Cohan is already in the works.
Magna and Yumiko
I’m putting these two together as the only real relationship they have is with each other, and neither of them has much else going on. So killing one would give the other something to react to, but I’m not sure which one makes more sense; Yumiko’s death would have more of an emotional impact on Magna, but Magna was also very annoying when she first appeared, and the character has never really recovered from it. I’m confident at least one of them will die, but maybe they’ll both go down fighting together.
Connie
Connie is deaf and played by Lauren Ridloff, the only Walking Dead actor with a real disability. It would be very, very messed up for the show to have her die. The optics would be very bad, and I imagine showrunner Angela Kang knows this.
Kelly
The life of Connie’s sister Kelly, on the other hand, feels more precarious. The show has always liked breaking up families and couples, and since Magna and Daryl both know how to communicate via sign language, her primary function in the story seems to be over. I could see the show going either way here.
Judith
The adorable Judith is essentially the last living Grimes on The Walking Dead (yes, I know Rick is out there somewhere, but he’s no longer on the flagship series, and I’m not sure RJ has ever had a line of dialogue), and thus the only viable connection to the series’ original main character. As messed up as TWD has been in the past, Rick and Michonne need someone meaningful to reunite with at the end of their miniseries. And I think AMC knows if tiny, badass Judith dies, we riot.
RJ
The Walking Dead has never shied away from killing children, but killing yet another Grimes kid would again feel cruel rather than narratively interesting. But then, the show has never done anything with RJ, so the only impact it would have is as the death of a very young child. In fact, I suspect RJ is so young he’s safe, but if one Grimes is gonna go, it’s gonna be RJ.
Herschel
Given that the characters on the show and the audience are still mourning Glenn’s death, and Herschel is effectively Glenn’s pint-sized avatar, I cannot imagine taking Maggie’s last bit of her husband away from her. However, Maggie’s miniseries has her and Negan travelling to Manhattan for some unknown reason. She could be bringing Herschel with her, but kids can be a narrative handicap; see how little time the two have shared onscreen together in TWD. But does it make narrative sense for Maggie to leave her son behind? My gut says he lives, but I wouldn’t necessarily place money on it.
Gracie
Aaron’s kid has been shown to need Judith’s help to survive a zombie attack, which is often a death sentence for a Walking Dead character. I could see the show fridging little Gracie to motivate Aaron, unfortunately, but hopefully that won’t be the case.
Lydia
Again, The Walking Dead seems to have left its most brutal days behind it, so I find it unlikely — but by no means impossible — that it would kill off a character who spent her life under the tyranny and abuse of Alpha would die so quickly after finally receiving her freedom. I’d give her a 75 per cent chance of survival.
Annie
Annie is married to Negan and pregnant with his child, and she’s the representative of Negan’s turn from the bloodthirsty, arrogant leader of the Saviors to a good man trying to do the right thing. Unfortunately, sticking her in the proverbial refrigerator and killing her off to put Negan through the paces feels like an extremely TWD move, especially since we haven’t heard that actor Medina Senghore has joined the Maggie and Negan series.
Princess
Princess is a very fun character that The Walking Dead has mostly ignored and I expect it to continue ignoring her.
Mercer
The General of the Commonwealth’s army has turned from a heartless soldier to a soldier with a heart of gold over the course of season 11, which means he’ll most likely go down fighting Lance Hornsby’s rogue Commonwealth soldiers or getting shot in the back by Commonwealth governor Pamela Milton to better establish herself as a villain. I give him a 20 per cent chance of survival, tops.
Max
The executive assistant of Commonwealth governor Pamela Milton, she’s so inconsequential that I can equally see her surviving or getting fridged to emotionally affect Michael and/or Eugene. Being nice, she’s also another character Milton could murder to be a more definite villain for Max’s perceived betrayal. If she does end up killed off, I would bet that Milton has a hand in it.
Tomi
This dude is dead as hell, sorry. Yumiko’s brother was living a happy life making desserts before she barged into the Commonwealth and alerted everyone he was a thoracic surgeon, the profession he held before the zombie apocalypse and was miserable doing. Basically, Yumiko ruined his life, and to narratively punish her for it, Tomi will become a man in the fridge and get murdered to bring tragedy to Yumiko.
Lance Hornsby
The undisputed villain of season 11, Hornsby is a — wait for it — dead man walking. The show’s already made it abundantly clear that either Daryl and the crew are going to die or Hornsby is, and we know Daryl, Maggie, and Negan all survive the series. Plus, the only villain The Walking Dead has let live is Negan, and that’s only because he became a good guy in the comics, too.
Pamela Milton
At the moment, the governor of the Commonwealth is a rich person exploiting the working class, which is evil, but also just capitalism. In the recent premiere, it’s established she didn’t know her son Sebastian was sending people out on fatal errands. But in order for the revolution Connie and the others are fomenting in the city to be fully justified, she’s going to have to do some very awful things before the end of the series, which will have fans clamoring for her death as well.
Kingsley Buffingsworth of the Cape Cod Buffingsworths
The biggest, douchiest, and most insufferable arsehole in the zombie apocalypse deserves to die, Kingsley — known on the show itself as Sebastian Milton — should by all rights get murdered horribly, hopefully eaten alive by zombies. In other series, such characters might survive because they are so sniveling and weaselly they’re basically human cockroaches, but The Walking Dead doesn’t throw curveballs. At least curveballs where people live.
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